Actions for And I Took That Personally : Explaining The Differing Routes to Personalist Dictatorships

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And I Took That Personally : Explaining The Differing Routes to Personalist Dictatorships

Author
Simsek, Caner
Published
[University Park, Pennsylvania] : Pennsylvania State University, 2023.
Physical Description
1 electronic document
Additional Creators
Banaszak, Lee Ann, 1960-
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Restricted (PSU Only).
Summary
This dissertation explores different routes to personalized dictatorships by examining the conflict between dictators and elites. The first chapter focuses on the puzzle that while some dictators prioritize control over armed agents of the security apparatus, other dictators first move to control economic resources. Using novel data from the MENA region between 1990 and 2020, I show that dictators who come to power via the breakdown of the prior regime (e.g. via coups and rebellions) have more job security and are more likely to personalize the security apparatus. In contrast, dictators who come to power via meltdown of the prior regime (e.g., via regular elections and selection of new elites) are less secure in their jobs and thus are more likely to initially personalize economic sectors. The second chapter is the natural extension of the theory presented in the first chapter and asks whether prioritizing economic sectors or the security apparatus helps stabilize dictatorships. I argue that dictators who successfully personalize the security apparatus enjoy longer tenures. The third chapter investigates a similar topic of elite purges in autocracies that lead to personalized dictatorships. How do dictators decide which elites to purge and what explains the post-purge fate of the purged elites? Using an original, historical dataset of Ottoman viziers (1320-1839), I show that elites with higher military competence are both more likely to be purged and also more likely to be executed after the purge.
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Dissertation Note
Ph.D. Pennsylvania State University 2023.
Technical Details
The full text of the dissertation is available as an Adobe Acrobat .pdf file ; Adobe Acrobat Reader required to view the file.
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